MADAM RIDES THE BUS

IV “Won’t your mother be looking for you?” the conductor asked when he gave the girl her ticket. “No, no one will be looking for me,” she said. The bus started, and again there were the same wonderful sights. Valli wasn’t bored in the slightest and greeted everything with the same excitement she’d felt the first time.

But suddenly she saw a young cow lying dead by the roadside, just where it had been struck by some fast-moving vehicle. “Isn’t that the same cow that ran in front of the bus on our trip to town?” she asked the conductor. The conductor nodded, and she was overcome with sadness. What had been a lovable, beautiful creature just a little while ago had now suddenly lost its charm and its life and looked so horrible, so frightening as it lay there, legs spreadeagled, a fixed stare in its lifeless eyes, blood all over...

The bus moved on. The memory of the dead cow haunted her, dampening her enthusiasm. She no longer wanted to look out the window. She sat thus, glued to her seat, until the bus reached her village at three forty.

She stood up and spreadeagled spread out haunted returned repeatedly to her mind; was impossible to forget stretched herself. Then she turned to the conductor and said, “Well, sir, hope to see you again.” “Okay, madam,” he answered her, smiling. “Whenever you feel like a bus ride, come and join us. And don’t forget to bring your fare.” She laughed and jumped down from the bus.

Then away she went, running straight for home. When she entered her house she found her mother awake and talking to one of Valli’s aunts, the one from South Street. This aunt was a real chatterbox, never closing her mouth once she started talking. “And where have you been?” said her aunt when Valli came in.

She spoke very casually, not expecting a reply. So Valli just smiled, and her mother and aunt went on with their conversation. “Yes, you’re right,” her mother said. “So many things in our midst and in the world outside.

How can we possibly know about everything? And even when we do know about something, we often can’t understand it completely, can we?” “Oh, yes!” breathed Valli. “What?” asked her mother. “What’s that you say?” “Oh,” said Valli, “I was just agreeing with what you said about things happening without our knowledge.” “Just a chit of a girl, she is,” said her aunt, “and yet look how she pokes her nose into our conversation, just as though she were a grown lady.” Valli smiled to herself.

She didn’t want them to understand her smile. But, then, there wasn’t much chance of that, was there? [Translated from the Tamil by K. S.

Sundaram Illustrated by R. K. Laxman] pokes her nose takes an interest in something that doesn't concern her What was Valli’s deepest desire? Find the words and phrases in the story that tell you this.

How did Valli plan her bus ride? What did she find out about the bus, and how did she save up the fare? What kind of a person is Valli? To answer this question, pick out the following sentences from the text and fill in the blanks.

The words you fill in are the clues to your answer. (i) “Stop the bus! Stop the bus!” And a tiny hand was raised . (ii) “Yes, I go to town,” said Valli, still standing outside the bus.

(iii) “There’s nobody here ,” she said haughtily. “I’ve paid my thirty paise like everyone else.” (iv) “Never mind,” she said, “I can . You don’t have to help me. ”I’m not a child, I tell you,” she said, .

(v) “You needn’t bother about me. I ,” Valli said, turning her face toward the window and staring out. (vi) Then she turned to the conductor and said, “Well, sir, I hope .” . Why does the conductor refer to Valli as ‘madam’?

. Find the lines in the text which tell you that Valli was enjoying her ride on the bus. . Why does Valli refuse to look out of the window on her way back?

. What does Valli mean when she says, “I was just agreeing with what you said about things happening without our knowledge.” . The author describes the things that Valli sees from an eight-year-old’s point of view. Can you find evidence from the text for this statement?

This story has a lot of people talking in it. The conductor jokes and laughs with Valli, some passengers try to show their concern for her, and her mother and her aunt spend time chatting. Read the conversations carefully. Then think of similar people, or similar situations that you have experienced.

Mimic a person or persons who spoke to you, saying what they said, along with your replies. Write a page — about three paragraphs — on one of the following topics. Have you ever planned something entirely on your own, without taking grown- ups into your confidence? What did you plan, and how?

Did you carry out your plan? Have you made a journey that was unforgettable in some way? What made it memorable? Are you concerned about traffic and road safety?

What are your concerns? How would you make road travel safer and more enjoyable? W HAT W E H AVE D ONE Related the story of Valli’s first bus ride. W HAT Y OU C AN D O The students should be given two or three days to collect old (used) tickets from their friends, relatives and acquaintances: they could be bus tickets, train tickets, plane tickets, cinema tickets, tickets to cultural events, etc.

By the time they finish the lesson they should be able to get a good collection in place. Get them to make a collage using as many as possible of the tickets collected, on a sheet of poster paper. This can then form the basis for many interesting activities: classification according to type of tickets (for what?) or price (how much?), etc; the most desirable tickets, the tickets no one wants, etc. — let students think of more ways to classify them.

Get students to write a paragraph with the collage as base, and their imagination as guide. You can also ask the students do the following. (i) In the story Valli has to save money and make plans to be able to ride the bus. In pairs, discuss how you spent your pocket money last month.

Did you spend it on yourself, or on someone dear to you? (ii) Valli's enthusiasm is dampened and the memory of the dead cow haunts her. In groups, discuss an incident which may have troubled or discouraged you.